The Joan Wiggle Dress by Charm Patterns
I'm a patron of Gertie (Charm Patterns by Gertie) and this wiggle dress is a recent release in her new series. Normally, I am a full skirt or a-line skirt type of gal, but the sewing technique of the top portion of the dress piqued my interest.
Thea Starr - Joan Wiggle Dress
Fabric hoarding came in handy for this one. In my stash was this 80’s vintage velour stretch knit type of fabric that had a nice strip to it. I also have a couple colors of ponte fabric too, which is what I used for the skirt. My Pfaff sewing machine has a stretch stitch setting and I used that in the construction of this. I also switched out my universal needle for a knit needle. Small things worth mentioning.
I took Gertie’s advice to go overkill on pinning every stripe together to get this effect and it paid off.
Up close. I’m pretty proud of this matching.
There are no buttons or zippers on this dress. (Also, sadly no pockets.) So, it’s an easy on and off pullover dress. I currently have a crushed velvet one cut out on my sewing table with the sweetheart neckline. I have some spare striped fabric that I will be making into the top version too.
The style of dress was inspired by a dress that Joan Holloway wears in Mad Men.
It’s pictured to the right.
I love the orange and black stripe on the original and I will searching to find something like that and recreate it.
I haven’t sorted out my plan for a constant need for a pocket for this outfit. I’m guessing I’ll just need to wear a blazer or a sweater that has pockets.
Overall, it was a nice sewing project to start off the new year.
Aside from sewing, I have some plans to revamp my shops in the works. I’m also working on something a little experimental that I hope will be fruitful. I’ll share of course as things develop.
I hope everyone has a safe and healthy start to the New Year!
xo-thea
2021 - Favorite Makes and Vintage Finds
Per usual once Halloween passes, I dive deep into the holiday season rush. This year was no exception. I mostly avoided socials and just posted little stories on IG.
Two days before Christmas/my birthday I closed up my shops for a bit of a vacation. It feels so good to recoup and let go of some rude customer interactions. I typically don’t take things personal, but with mail delays things got a little spicy at times.
With all of that behind me and 2021 almost behind us, I wanted to share some of my favorite makes and vintage finds of the year.
A lined jacket, vintage embroidery tea towels,(An Original By Thea Starr) kanzashi, floral knit top, Super Mario circle skirt and our (6 by 6 Arts) Roots plant stand.
Bedsheet summer dress, bedsheet 60's style dress, snake earrings, vintage patttern Halloween dress, 80's A-line skirt and a vintage fabric Christmas blouse.
I had many makes this year. Also, many I didn’t finish. I look forward to making even more in 2022.
A ridiculous vintage velvet wall hanging, a rare vintage Olga full lace dressing robe, vintage bias tape and more from my awesome neighbor, 1970's deadstock goddess fabric, vintage ice cream boobies slip dress and my vintage tea cart that I plan to restore.
My first true vintage ceramic tree, the angry cat sweater (I sold it), my 1940's vanity set, super clean vintage Daisy print Pyrex divided dish, my beloved Big Eyed doll and my metal/enamel vintage s
2021 was strange to say the least. I’m looking forward to seeing how strange 2022 will be.
Happy New Year Friends!
xo-Thea
Halloween 2021
Happy November to you. I hope you all had a very nice Halloween. We had a fun Halloween season. (That I started decorating for in August.)
I unfortunately, didn’t have time to release all of the products I wanted to on our Darkness Drive collection. We’re still adjusting to just one of us being a full time maker. I still plan on releasing those items in the coming months.
I documented my Halloween Week wardrobe. Many of the items you might recognize from previous posts, others were just some casual wear for sitting on my buns for the AdobeMAX conference.
I shared our annual laser engraved pumpkin video on YouTube. It’s just a fun thing that we’ve done every years since the inception of our business.
Trick or Treating was still a little weird this year. We saw a lot of neighbors asking questions and saw suggestions of how to do it safely. I came up with a little self service display pictured above. We always do something away from out front door due our beloved rescue dog who isn’t fond of little children. We had more trick or treaters than we did in 2019 and our little display (which looked much cooler in the dark with the battery operated candles glowing) seemed to work out really well.
Now onto fall projects. I have a stack of thrifted wool that will be skirts and jackets soon. I also have to clean up my Christmas ornament designs. We’ve already sold quite a few over the weekend.
xo-Thea
Vlog: Pumpkin Patch Trip and Small Business Setbacks
Over the weekend my eldest daughter rallied us up to make an annual pumpkin patch trip. It was rainy, muddy and loud. (The patch that we went to has an apple cannon.) Despite all of that, we had a great time. Check out the video below to see what it was like. Tune back in the last week of October for our annual pumpkin carving session.
In this vlog, I also talk about a couple set backs. With life adjustments and not being full time makers any more, we’re simply just not creating/releasing products as fast as we used to. To me, it’s a 100% frustrating and I hope to magically find extra hours in the week. I’ve been sleeping less and doing more - but I still can’t get to things I want to. However, we are creating a bigger network of vendors for our established products which is great. We’re just trying to streamline a balance of everything and the creative in me just wants to create more. Ugh.
I am sad to not be able to release the two clothing items i wanted to. That particular issue came down to cost of materials. I intend to use dead-stock fabrics for my limited releases. I also intend on offering inclusive sizing. The math and materials just haven’t worked out in my favor so far. I am hoping for spring and summer 2022 to do that.
Despite my personal frustration about work, I’m really enjoying my favorite season. We’ve had cozy fires, soups and set plans for family time. Fall is my favorite.
I hope all of you are well and I appreciate you all! - Thea
Adding To My Halloween Wardrobe
While I have been mainly busy with 6 by 6 Arts recently, I have managed to sneak in some quality sewing time.
I follow a few reproduction clothing brands and I love all of their Halloween (holidays in general) designs. Unfortunately despite my daily manifestations attempts, I am not a money rich lady and I have to just admire some great pieces.
Side note - Many of these women owned companies like Pinup Girl Clothing for example, are extremely small companies. Many pieces are small batch made in the USA. Fabric and labor is expensive and when I make purchases from there I consider them investment pieces and understand the work, time and money that goes into them. I know I’m actually getting a deal on some pieces just in fabric alone.
My zipper front princess dress made from Alexander Henry Fabrics 2006 Pumpkin Party Print
With all of that said, this year since I’ve taken a deep dive back into sewing I decided to add Halloween themed pieces to my wardrobe. DIY style.
I show off a few pieces that I’ve made in the linked video below.
In the video, I do touch on the expense of fabric. I thrifted all of the fabric shown in the video. The striped full circle skirt dress, I thrifted 7 yards of that fabric for $4.99. Up close pictured are available on my Instagram. I didn’t thrift them in a short amount of time and I sat on some of these fabric pieces for a long while. But it can be done. We all can have lucky days at the thrift. Or an online fabric shop on a discount day.
I hope you’ll check out my video and welcome to October! I love spooky season!
xo-Thea
Vintage Show & Tell: Nila Sewing Compact
I share a really fun recent vintage find in this video. A Nila Sewing Compact. I’ve been dabbling with sewing stuff for most of my life and I have never happened upon anything like this.
I love it so much. Even though I paid “up” for it at the thrift store.
The logo is quite small and I don’t have the best lens for the job.
I love sharing vintage sewing items with you all. I use most of them myself. Some I still need to figure out how to use. I will definitely have more of this style of video in the future.
I had a couple inquiries about if I am still sewing. But of course and I will have a show & tell video all about that next week.
xo-Thea
Green
I get asked about leaf clips often. They are the perfect little detail to add to your ‘do.
I just listed five new sets in the shop for those of you who have been waiting for them.
Have a great weekend friends!
xo-thea
Using My Vintage Sewing Patterns
As mentioned a few days ago, i basically went on a sewing rampage. Aside from the Garden Dress I mentioned, I kicked out three bedsheet dresses. All made from vintage patterns and vintage bedsheets.
Technically, the Simplicity Pattern shown here isn’t quite vintage.
I share the information about them in this video.
As with every sewing project, I learn something new. Let me know which one you liked the best!
-Thea
Weekend Sale!
I’m having a little weekend sale over in my Etsy shop! Vintage clothing, vintage fabrics and kanzashi are all included. No code necessary.
15% off orders $30 and up.
Sale ends Monday.
I need to make room for new pieces and autumnal themed things that are coming soon!
xo-Thea
Vintage Jumper Dress and a Panic Attack
My new garden jumper dress and my black calla lilies.
In my constant hunt for vintage fabrics, I recently found a bolt of dead stock denim fabric. It’s a mid-weight black and white striped cotton/poly blend from Quincy Fancies. It was originally sold for $1.49 a yard. Amazing right?
The original bolt tag.
Compare at $2.99 yd!
I have been wanting a durable dress to be out in the garden in. Something that won’t get caught onto the blackberry bushes when I walk by. Something with big pockets for my little shears for cutting flowers too. In my vintage pattern collection I had this “Easy stitch n’ save by McCall’s Misses Jumper from 1997. Pattern number 8878.
I thought this combo would be an excellent mix for what I wanted. The pattern is very easy to work with and follow. I did have to size it down a bit to fit my shorter frame. I also had to do a full bust measurement for the bodice as well. I actually need to take it apart and size down a smidgen more to fit me better.
You can see the loose fit in the bodice.
I cut everything out and dug out 14 “close enough” matching buttons and then called it a day before sewing it together. Well, in that time my younger dog Yuki (she’s almost 3) had a small seizure.
It wasn’t something I had personally seen or dealt with before. She was napping in front of a fan and then popped up and did this weird stiff crouching stance like she was frozen. John thought maybe she was choking and couldn’t breathe. He attempted to see if anything was blocking her airway. But that wasn’t it. My knee jerk reaction is always, to go outside and get some air. By the time we made it to the back door (everything seemed like in was in slow motion) she seemed to calm down. John and I were still in complete panic mode and decided to rush her to the emergency vet. I held our 70lbs puppy all the way there because she doesn’t like car rides and she was a drooling mess. The ER vet was 100% awesome and totally patient with two babbling panicked ding dongs (us). Yuki had returned to her very happy wagging self when she was examined and we were basically sent home after a bit. It all turned out okay and she’s fine. But boy, John and I were on the verge of losing it. As John’s cousin Jennifer said “Take my husband but not my dogs.” Ha!
Yuki the evening after her seizure. Totally chillin’ like nothing ever happened.
After all that stress build up and needing to closely monitor Yuki (in case there were more seizures), I continued making my garden jumper dress. However, since I was so worked up I totally oversewed the thing. I did all French seams and marathoned made this. While staring down Yuki the whole time, making sure she’s okay.
That was quite eventful to say the least. Yuki is thankfully okay and was treated by a special visit the night of her seizure by her favorite “boy” who drove all the way out to see his dog. I am very happy with my new garden jumper dress. The pattern was great and super easy. The buttons/buttholes were time consuming. I’ll most likely make another one but with either a zipper front or snap buttons.
The kanzashi I am wearing in the photos. Coming soon to the shop!
Thank you to everyone who reached out and sent good vibes and especially stories of your own pets. They all really helped me settle down. I appreciate you all! - xo Thea
Vintage Show and Tell - Furniture From Forslund Catalog
The Closet Historian is one of my favorite YouTube content creators. I recently found myself binge watching her Cataloging Catalogs playlist. I loved looking through them with her and just seeing all the clothing pieces and accessories that were available. (And that I wish I had now.)
In a recent thrifting trip, I recently found my very first vintage catalog. I thought it would be fun to do a little show and tell about it.
Furniture From Forslund - Carl Forslund Grand Rapids Michigan (United States) Catalog copyright 1959. Paperback 112 pages. Aside from Carl Forslund's furniture, also featured are Owl Hollow Pressed Glass, Westmoreland Milk Glass, Mason's Ironstone Vista and more! I know it would be better and clearer to offer a viewable online catalog. Perhaps in the near future I could do that. But until then enjoy browsing along with me. - Thea
New Stock and My Sister In Law's YouTube Channel
Two Tiered Vintage Cream Kanzashi Hair Clip
I’m continuing to add new casual pieces to my shop. I only have a few more to share here and then it’s on to making new pieces.
I have to admit, with damaging my main lens on vacation earlier this month I am having a little learning curve with my replacement lens. I’m not 100% happy with these photos. But I am an artist, are artists ever 100% happy? (Hahahaha)
Speaking of my vacation and happy - my sister in law Laura is a vintage seller and YouTuber. This is temporary until Survivor chooses her as a contestant or until Rick Steves takes her on as a side kick.
She pops into antique malls and thrift stores and shares what she finds. She is into the bohemian and MCM aesthetic a bit different from my taste, but like how she is in real life she’s fun human and entertaining to watch. Also, she’s my sister in law, so if you have a connection to our beloved Rick Steves let us know if not, give her a follow.
In her latest episode she shared a little bit of our family vacation and some Oregon Coast antique/thrift finds.
During her hunt she came up on some vintage kimono. They were all in good condition, nothing I would use for my work. She mentions my work in the video too.
While I have new items soon to be in the works for my shop here, I am also cranking out new prototypes for 6 by 6. I’m pretty excited about what I am doing over there so I’ll be bouncing back and forth between here and there with posts. Follow me on Instagram for daily updates if you’re interested in following along.
xo-Thea
Shop Update!
Yesterday I shared on my Instagram, that I recently found a cache of vintage kimono fabrics that I hide from myself. Or put in a “safe” place for later. But before I will allow myself to start working on new pieces, I have to share some pieces I never photographed.
I have a handful of casual wear pieces. No formal occasion pieces will be in this update. These pieces were all made last year before I knew that there wouldn’t be any in person craft or wholesale shows.
Purple has long been a favorite with my customers and I already got a couple of messages about these gals.
I still do all of my own photography and photo editing.
I wanted to have everything listed yesterday, but spending most of the day in the photo booth with those lights fried my eyes. So, I’m listing things today. I will send direct links to those who asked about pieces already. But check back this evening (Pacific Time) and I should have things up by then.
Thanks so much for continuing to follow my maker’s journey. If you follow me on YouTube, I took a little break after my boys moved out. I had lots of cleaning (and still have) lots of rearranging to do. Every kid, just leaves massive amounts of stuff in the family home as per tradition and mom gets to figure out where it all goes. But I hope to film later today or tomorrow.
xo-Thea
1960s Vintage Vibin'
In my constant quest for vintage fabrics, I often happen upon vintage clothing. I am compelled to save them and find them new homes on selling sites like my Etsy store. I just can’t leave goodies behind.
On a recent hunt, I found a handful of vintage dresses and one romper that were not 24’ waist. Bigger (normal) sizes are a bit harder to find in the vintage department.
I upswept my grays for this shoot. :)
Most of the items were in the 1960s style like the dress pictured above. The 60’s isn’t my vibe. I prefer some uptight secretary look from the 40’s or 80s with longer hems. The world got enough of my bare gams when I played roller derby.
But there was something about this print that reminded me of my Aunt Onalee. There is a picture some where with my Aunt wearing something very similar to this with the flash brightening up her face an illuminating her smile. If I were to keep this dress, I’d call it my Onalee. Since I felt the connection, I had to do a little 60’s shoot.
I’m hoping to find this gal a new home. She’s a vintage size 14 with a ton of stretch. Up to a 42” bust/38” waist and 38” in length. For reference I’m a 38F/44” hips and I’m 5’4” on a good day. I had tons of room to move and stretch in this. The Brand is Sacony and you know it’s polyester. I do already have it listed but if you are interested, leave me a comment below to inquire about it’s status.
The kanzashi worn in this shoot will be available in my shop shortly.
xo-thea
Just An Old Biddy - The Almost Empty Nester
Just an old biddy.
My sons moved out (again) yesterday. We’re all close as a family and I often feature them in my blog/vlog. I think the assumption after your nest is empty you turn into an old biddy. While, I’ve let my grey grow out and I’m into old vintage things, I’m far from being a biddy.
I recently told my sister in law who has a toddler and one on the way, the days are long but the years are short. Offspring grow up fast. But In my experience so far, you will always be needed and called on. Often. Have you met my kids? Or even just watched us in my videos?
My sons only moved a few miles away and I feel lucky for that too. College and work opportunities is stuff only the big city can provide in this season of their lives. I did it too.
My next chapter already has a line up of projects, family stuff and cleaning because my boys are messy.
Also, my nest isn’t empty my youngest a college student, still lives at home (college student too). The only one of my kids that doesn’t have to share a bathroom. In a large family that is a HUGE deal. Especially when brothers are involved.
I’m not sure if I will have time for a video this week since I’m sorting all of the remainders from my boys’ move. But check out my Instagram this week. I recently happened upon some really fun vintage stuff recently that I am very excited to share.
xo- thea
Super Mario Circle Skirt and vintage fabrics in my Etsy shop
I don’t know why it slips my mind to post here when I upload a video. But here we are.
I recently turn a Super Mario bedsheet into a circle skirt.
It was a fun make, but the fabric was horrid. I go into that in the video.
Speaking of fabric, I have recently uploaded some vintage fabrics from my stash into my Etsy shop.
Why not here you might wonder? Well, Etsy’s SEO is quite good for that sort of thing and I’m taking advantage of it. Also, shoppers there are like Amazon shoppers. They seem to careless about the aesthetics of your shop as a whole and are just interested in the products. So, its easy to just toss up some random goodies in my shop over there. Maybe I’m wrong, but so far its been working for me.
I’m currently editing a new video for tomorrow whilst sitting in front of a fan. I do whatever I can to avoid the sun and the heat during the summer. Some people complain about the rain and gray skies, I complain about the sun and the heat.
More tomorrow! xo-Thea The PNW rain lover.
On Our Menu - Vegetable Pancit Bihon
This is an accompanying post to a video on my channel linked below. (Available May 19, 2020 12pm Pacific.)
I loathe big stories before the ingredients list when I am looking up a recipe. So, I’m going to give you the details right up front.
Basic recipe ingredients:
1 8ounce package of Excellent Brand Rice Stick (We used 2 packages in this video.)
2 carrots julienned
1 medium yellow onion sliced
4 cloves of garlic (at minimum) chopped (We used 8 cloves.)
2 stalks of celery sliced
1 cup of snow peas sliced
2-3 cups of cabbage or bok choy sliced (We used bok choy.)
2+ tablespoons of soy sauce (to taste)
1 tablespoon of Filipino fish sauce (optional)
1 small lemon sliced and seeded
Ground black pepper to taste
A neutral oil like canola for the pan.
Water if needed. (Traditionally, chicken stock is used.)
Optional but traditional (chicken, pork and shrimp) small bite sized pieces cooked after the onions and garlic. Or as Jina says in the video use leftover meat.
Basically follow the steps in the video and you’re good. This a very tasty easy side dish or meal to make.
Substitutions:
If you cannot find the Excellent Brand of Noodles at the store or on Amazon like I can. Maifun rice stick noodles also can work.
Tamari. I get asked this a lot from my gluten free friends. Yes, you can substitute tamari for soy sauce.
Also, as stated in the video I cannot confirm whether or not if the noodles I used are gluten free or not so I will leave that up to you to discover.
“A person I know makes it differently.”
Ahh yes, that is one of the greatest joys in life isn’t it? We all add our own personal touches to dishes that make it ours. I personally have never tasted to lasagnas that are the same.
This is a tried and true version for us that I learned to make from my mom and stepmothers. (All of my stepmothers were Filipino too.)
Are you sure you’re Filipino? You don’t look like it. Also, should you be making a Filipino dish if you’re only “half”.
I have laughed in someone’s face when I was asked am I sure that I am Filipino. If you knew my mom, you’d know she’s undoubtedly my mother. I just happen to look like the other parent that created me.
I am proudly Filipino with a sprinkling of another Asian heritage. My children (who are a quarter Filipino with darker skin than I have) and I are white passing. Genetics are wild like that. However, as many biracial people will attest, we are whole people with blended heritages. This is my cultural experience and I get to claim it. Just like I get to claim my German heritage from my dad.
Left - Thea’s Mom. Right - Thea’s Lola (Grandma) 1970s.
I did not have the “typical” white American childhood. My mom suffered from culture shock when she came to America and I witnessed a lot of that. I also went to school with “smelly” lunches and other “typical” “my mom is from another country and speaks another language” stuff.
My children have a Lola (tagalog for grandma) and got to experience very Filipino things too.
Like with many cultures, I, and now my adult children get to express their appreciation for our heritage through the dishes we make. Sharing a meal with your people, friends or family is the best way to show fellowship for a lack of a better term. If you’ve ever met a Filipino, you’d know there’s nothing more that we like to do. Share a meal, sing, dance and have togetherness. I am proud to share this little of togetherness with you.
Mabuhay.
Thea
Some favorite thrift finds and my first button down blouse.
John and I had a vintage hard to find Legoland Castle set(s) to share this week on my channel. So, I thought it would be fun to share a couple of our favorite thrift finds too.
In other news, I made my first successful button down blouse. I’ll be dedicating a post to this in the future as I am currently making more. I am genuinely surprised that I got the fit right in the bust, but boy howdy - I am stoked about it.
In other sewing news, a neighbor in my local Buy Nothing Group offered up a big box of vintage sewing patterns. I was on it and was lucky to be selected.
There are so many goodies in there, I can’t wait to try a few of them.
Sorry to those of you who follow me for my kanzashi work. I just haven’t had any new projects that are completed to share. I still do make them. Also, I am indulging this sewing bug that I have. I really do appreciate the support and encouragement on my sewing projects.
Tomorrow’s blog post will be a long awaited one and it’s a recipe. So come back tomorrow for that.
xo-Thea
Vintage 1970's Nishijin Pachinko Machine + Mother's Day 2021
1970’s Nishijin Pachinko Machine
I took a hint and a few nudges and very recently started sharing some vintage things I’ve happened upon or acquired. First was my 1940’s Vanity. That was on my wishlist for so long, I felt it warranted a dedicated vlog/blog post.
Just a few days after acquiring my vanity another long wished for item was checked off of my list.
A vintage Pachinko Machine!
After some Mother’s Day shenanigans, John and I share a bit about the machine in my video this week. John did have to do some light repair with more to do in the near future. It is fully functional and super fun. it is everything I hoped it would be. As mentioned in the video, we do intend to mount it on a wall of our family room and do an entire photoshoot around it. Because, it’s us.
Admittedly, the entire reason I’ve wanted one is due to the movie Kamikaze Girls. That movie influenced so many aspects of my life when it came out. I often say that my aesthetic is a cross between Kamikaze Girls and Morticia Addams. At least I aspire it to be that.
My bebes doing pictures right.
My Mother’s Day was a good one. One of my long standing gifts for Mother’s Day is a group photo. As you can see, we get creative with that too. I love my brood, they are a fun bunch. I am extremely lucky.
Not sure where Trevor is for this picture but this is one of my favorite pictures from this weekend.
For those of you who follow me for fabric, you are in luck. This week I am adding some new vintage fabric yardage (That’s right yardage!) to my Etsy shop. I have some incredible mid century deadstock fabric that I plan to take an obscene amount of photos of.
Stay tuned for that.
xo-Thea
I made a dress out of a bedsheet.
If you’ve been with me for awhile, you know i am all about repurposing vintage fabrics. I reuse all that I possibly can reuse from a damaged vintage kimono. A few years ago while thirsting I started to notice some really pretty patterns on some vintage bedsheets. I had the intention to use them to make curtains and decorative hold things with them. But it dawned on me that I could use them to make dresses.
There’s tons of fabric to use! It’s more affordable than heading into JoAnn’s for a some fabric.
In my video this week, I talk a bit about it.
xo-Thea